ALL Nebraska I-130 Filers -- Part 4

[Kimi31 126]

1 minute ago, JMPM said:

I just came across a potomac case number.. someone was able to initiate a case status inquiry with Potomac (PD 1/28/2019) on 4/12/2019 they got a response on 4/16/2019  and then an approval  today 5/6/2019 

WHat in the merry hell is that about? 😭

[Mr & Mrs T 778]

9 minutes ago, JMPM said:

I just came across a potomac case number.. someone was able to initiate a case status inquiry with Potomac (PD 1/28/2019) on 4/12/2019 they got a response on 4/16/2019  and then an approval  today 5/6/2019 

With NSC we can just dream for that to happen 

[gonzolux 82]

Every few days I do a search on Case Tracker for the 500 numbers around mine. I just did one and while no one has gotten approvals, in the last 5 days they have sent out 12 RFEs to folks from either my PD (June 6, 2018) or the PD the day before. So I'm taking this as a sign that these cases from my PD are at least FINALLY being looked at by a human. 

[jjack 7]

1 hour ago, gonzolux said:

Every few days I do a search on Case Tracker for the 500 numbers around mine. I just did one and while no one has gotten approvals, in the last 5 days they have sent out 12 RFEs to folks from either my PD (June 6, 2018) or the PD the day before. So I'm taking this as a sign that these cases from my PD are at least FINALLY being looked at by a human. 



My I130 case also went to NSC and the submission receipt date is June 13, 2018. 

So hopefully we hear back soon! It has been really stressful so far for my wife and I. 

[IndiaAnnie 163]

6 hours ago, Jo&Ro said:

If you don't mind me asking, how long did that take? I have a feeling we will need to do that with her kids after she gets here. We were not planning for it to take over a year for each time we file. When we started this everything and everyone was saying 6-7.5 months. 

 

And congrats on finally getting to be together! 

Don't mind at all...

 

It was a little over three weeks from request to approval.

 

I sent my initial complaint to my senator back when we started this discussion in March...on the 26th to be exact. The senators aid called me personally on March 27th to discuss my concerns about the case backlog at Nebraska and had me sign a release form for them to make contact with the Nebraska center liaison.

 

They replied April 2nd stating that it's taking 10mths or longer to process cases (and they're working to redistribute throughout USCIS) and that my only option at this point was to request an expedite if I had a qualifying event. I thought long and hard about how to justify and prove it.

 

@Tissa On April 6th I sent a letter, photos, timeline, medical letter for my daughter, school fee invoice, governor's state of emergency declaration from our storm and bids for our property damage (noting that my husband could personally do the work to rebuild fencing, down the trees, etc as opposed to paying contractors $20k) etc. to the senators office. They sent it to USCIS along with a letter of support signed by the Senator and it was approved on April 30th (just received notice today in mail even before the senator office received a response)!!

 

I know the difference in my case is that my senator is a HUGE advocate speaking out against the red tape at USCIS on Capitol Hill and he signed a personal letter supporting our case expedite request. I know that we're blessed and it's unusual...clearly based on the responses from other senators on the subject. I am very sorry and welcome you all to move to Oregon (joking)!

 

On another note, just saw another approval from Dec 2018 India case approved today...from Potomac...with no expedite. It's bull$hit!!!

Edited May 7, 2019 by IndiaAnnie

[IndiaAnnie 163]

7 hours ago, Tissa said:

I am glad they accepted your expedite request. The guidelines for financial and humanitarian reasons are extremely blurry from what I read in USCIS site. Sick child is straightforward and understandable.but do you mind sharing what you provided as financial and humanitarian reasons to expedite? You can PM me of you dont want to discuss it on the forum. Goodluck with the rest if the process!

Hey, just edited and tagged you in another response that will answer this question. I agree and so I went for it...basically I outlined all of our travel dates/cost (including wedding abroad) in chronological order, our failed K1 process over the prior 18mths (including a rejected expedite for same medical back then), copy of our freak snow storm that resulted in state of emergency and extensive property damage on our new home (of less than 30-days so insurance doesn't apply) and school fee invoices due for our twins abroad (two kids here and two kids there)...all told you put a value on the situation and we're in a sizeable hole because of this process. Just think of all the  money that's leaking out of the U.S. economy from all hundreds of thousands of these cases combined!?!

 

We were really approved in the same timeframe as a few other couples that went through failed K1 process so I suspect it wasn't really anything spectacular other than a little grace and the fact that we've all been approved and cleared already. It was even harder this time around because the timeframe estimates doubled.

[R+M Jordan 22]

8 hours ago, IndiaAnnie said:

Friends - 

 

I share with a heavy heart because I understand the pain having gone through a failed K1 journey over 18mths prior to our current CR1 journey. I applaud all of you for fighting to bring awareness and attention to the backlog issue and I as well have worked with my senator, Peter DeFazio, and his aid this past month to file a formal complaint against the Nebraska backlogs (to which they replied that a full review of the backlog and case releveling is in process throughout USCIS). My senators office is very involved with the process and fighting on behalf of all those affected (because legal immigration backlogs is one of his main topics). They are listening and taking notice!!

 

In my case, they recommended that I file for an expedite based on humanitarian and financial need (we also have a medical component with a sick child) and happy to report with the support of my senators office managing the process that our expedite was accepted and approved on Friday, May 3rd (formal letter in the mail for delivery today). It did NOT update anything on any of the case trackers or online status at USCIS which is interesting in itself. I placed detailed notes in my update to our timeline so everyone has an idea of our situation and why the expedite was approved. It's hard to feel happy about it because I feel everyone's pain being stuck in this process since August 2017. Too long!!

 

I will continue to follow...support...share and send everyone my love and prayers through the process. 

 

Hang in there and don't lose hope please because your voices are being heard!!

 

Annie

That's awesome! I'm from Oregon too. DeFazio is great and was able help in a previous visa case i had filed. I'm glad he was able to help you out! We still have a ways to go with a 12/15/18 NOA1.... absence makes the heart grow fonder they say lol I hope the rest of the process goes smoothly for you!

[bel044 49]

Hey, today was a nutty day at work, so I'm just now getting around to sending my email.  Just wanted to let you all that I sent mine too

[Tissa 15]

5 hours ago, IndiaAnnie said:

Hey, just edited and tagged you in another response that will answer this question. I agree and so I went for it...basically I outlined all of our travel dates/cost (including wedding abroad) in chronological order, our failed K1 process over the prior 18mths (including a rejected expedite for same medical back then), copy of our freak snow storm that resulted in state of emergency and extensive property damage on our new home (of less than 30-days so insurance doesn't apply) and school fee invoices due for our twins abroad (two kids here and two kids there)...all told you put a value on the situation and we're in a sizeable hole because of this process. Just think of all the  money that's leaking out of the U.S. economy from all hundreds of thousands of these cases combined!?!

 

We were really approved in the same timeframe as a few other couples that went through failed K1 process so I suspect it wasn't really anything spectacular other than a little grace and the fact that we've all been approved and cleared already. It was even harder this time around because the timeframe estimates doubled.

Thank you so much for your response! I joined not long ago and I dont know all of your story. Why were you denied K1? But approved CR1? So strange...

[IndiaAnnie 163]

18 minutes ago, Tissa said:

Thank you so much for your response! I joined not long ago and I dont know all of your story. Why were you denied K1? But approved CR1? So strange...

Yes, it happens often with India, Morocco and middle East countries but I wasn't well informed at the start...we should have just married abroad in the first place but I really wanted my teenage children and my mother (who is oxygen dependent and cannot travel) to be at our marriage. In hindsight, it would have been faster/easier/cheaper to just plan a wedding abroad (which we ended up doing this past November with my husband's family and our friends/colleagues in his native). We'll have an American fusion reception here once he is settled later this year.

 

My husband and I were both divorced with children...colleagues who just happened to fall madly in love after meeting in person five years into our work together. We have a love story made for the movies!! ❤️

 

So in our case we've already been approved through the process and cleared through background checks it was just the interviewing officer in Mumbai, who was horrible that day to many, that chose not to approve and placed us in administrative processing. I was there in person and had never been so ashamed of my own country watching the way he treated the Indian people with such disrespect and distain. I filed a complaint against him with his superiors at the embassy and my senator so that probably didn't help resolve our case favorably but I didn't care...there's no excuse for blatant abuse of power in a position like that. I was embarrassed to be an American that day in the Indian embassy and I exercised my rights to stand up for those who didn't/couldn't for fear of rejection. I have no regrets but it's been painful to relive the process.

 

There are some in the CR1 process even that are placed in AP after the interview for social media checks or further investigation and have a year or more wait (difficult countries or specific religious groups). It's very sad to watch the process but I understand that national security is important and it's a necessary process. It's just a very cryptic journey.

 

Welcome to the party and I hope that you have nothing but a smooth journey ahead!!

[IndiaAnnie 163]

4 hours ago, R+M Jordan said:

That's awesome! I'm from Oregon too. DeFazio is great and was able help in a previous visa case i had filed. I'm glad he was able to help you out! We still have a ways to go with a 12/15/18 NOA1.... absence makes the heart grow fonder they say lol I hope the rest of the process goes smoothly for you!

Hello!! I saw another couple in Corvallis recently approved as well so you might be right in line. I know that having a vocal senator who's well known by USCIS helps and his staff is excellent should you find yourself in a position to reach out. I wish you the very best and hopeful that you'll see approval soon.

 

I hope they are truly working on a caseload rebalance AND hear the voices of all the lovely folks on here advocating and fighting for speedy adjudication.

[Jessica and Ne 8]

I wish that they took expedited requests seriously looked at them all equally and didn't rely on the luck of the draw of who your Senator is or what power they can pull. We have also been through the K1 process, tried to expedite and was denied, all for nothing and now CR1 is waiting forever. We too have medical (there are no doctors capable of treating my son in Cambodia and he is now in the USA without me! We tried our best to keep him healthy by traveling to Malaysia every 3 months. Talk about a reason for expedite!) and serious business loss due to this situation, but they don't care. What I have learned through this whole process is that fairness doesn't exist. I am happy for the people who have managed to find people to get them approved or expedited, but it saddens me that it it's not fair and equal.

[IndiaAnnie 163]

15 minutes ago, Jessica and Ne said:

I wish that they took expedited requests seriously looked at them all equally and didn't rely on the luck of the draw of who your Senator is or what power they can pull. We have also been through the K1 process, tried to expedite and was denied, all for nothing and now CR1 is waiting forever. We too have medical (there are no doctors capable of treating my son in Cambodia and he is now in the USA without me! We tried our best to keep him healthy by traveling to Malaysia every 3 months. Talk about a reason for expedite!) and serious business loss due to this situation, but they don't care. What I have learned through this whole process is that fairness doesn't exist. I am happy for the people who have managed to find people to get them approved or expedited, but it saddens me that it it's not fair and equal.

I completely agree with you and my heart hurts for you so much. I'm so sad that you are away from your son through this process. Did you get any response or help from your U.S. assigned senator? Did they send you a rejection to an expedite request recently on your CR1?

[Jessica and Ne 8]

1 minute ago, IndiaAnnie said:

I completely agree with you and my heart hurts for you so much. I'm so sad that you are away from your son through this process. Did you get any response or help from your U.S. assigned senator? Did they send you a rejection to an expedite request recently on your CR1?

I have contacted both senators assigned to my area in the US, neither one has bothered to even reply. I asked for the expedite on my own through the K1 process and was denied within 3 days after submitting all of my son's hospitalization records and statements from the medical team in Malaysia that Cambodia does not have the facilities or the doctors to be able to treat him. He left for the USA in February this year, more than a year after our initial expedite request, so it makes no difference now if I ask for it again.

[Mr. Bama 46]

I just sent my email to NPR as well. Lets pray.